


Of Strange Elves

by yaruna



Series: Of Years Gone By [28]
Category: The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
Genre: Aragorn POV, Attempt at Humor, Gen, POV First Person, Vignette
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-09
Updated: 2016-01-09
Packaged: 2018-05-12 19:17:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5677537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yaruna/pseuds/yaruna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wherein everyone meets up in Rivendell before the Ring goes South.</p>
<p>Aragorn POV</p>
<p>All parts of the series are stand-alone one-shots, though some may have references to previous happenings</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Strange Elves

It had been an intense couple of months since the Council. I had travelled first with my brothers, and later with the Rangers over the lands, searching for signs and news of our enemy. It had been a fruitless search and I had returned to the House of Elrond exhausted and with a heavy heart.

When I had risen from my bed, I was better rested and had gone to find the merry hobbits. It was quite easy to find them; all I had to do was follow the smell of pipe-weed, as no Elf would ever be caught smoking.

‘Strider!’ Frodo called and gave a wave as he saw me. I smiled and went to join them in their ring, Frodo shuffling a bit away from Pippin to give me room to sit in between them.

‘Have a smoke, Strider,’ Bilbo said and held out a pouch of pipe-weed for me.

‘Don’t mind if I do,’ I answered, accepting the pouch gratefully. I reached for my own pipe inside of my tunic, stuffed it and Frodo reached out to light it for me. I took my first puff of the day, enjoying the taste.

‘I very much mind if you do,’ a voice came from behind us. I frowned, recognizing it at Legolas, but he should not be here. So I turned around, pipe in my mouth, and it was indeed Legolas that had spoken.

I took the pipe out of my mouth and blew out the smoke. I had not considered the wind however, and it was blown straight into Legolas’ face, making him scrunch his nose.

‘I am very happy to meet you also, Estel,’ he said and waved his hand in front of his nose before he nimbly jumped off the balcony to get away from the smoke. I smiled as four of the Hobbits scrambled to get to their feet and to the edge of the balcony.

Bilbo and I stayed where we sat and the old Hobbit blew out a ring of smoke and quirked his lips.

‘He did it again,’ he said matter-of-factly and I could only nod, entirely amused.

‘But Strider, he just fell!’ Merry called out and I got to my feet to join the Hobbits. I leaned against the railing of the balcony, puffing out another breath of smoke.

The Hobbits were looking down, trying to find any sign of Legolas. I, instead, looked upwards, into the branches of the nearest tree, where the Elf was sitting with a wide smile upon his face.

‘I do much prefer to be out of your breath,’ he said in a teasing tone and I was moved to blow a ring of smoke towards him again. I contained myself, for the wind would take it apart before it reached him, and he would laugh at me for trying.

‘What are you doing here, Legolas?’ I asked.

‘Lord Elrond sent for me, so I am come,’ he said and showed off by jumping down onto a thin branch below the one he had been sitting on. ‘I am fine, as you can see,’ he said, extending his arms pointedly. ‘Speaking of your father, I have better go find him.’

He jumped down from the tree, back onto the balcony, and walked inside the House.

‘That is one strange Elf,’ Pippin said, looking at the last place Legolas had been seen, and the other Hobbits nodded slowly in agreement.

Stranger still is why he was here. He had not left Mirkwood for several years before the Council, and now he had done so twice in as many months.

‘Strider,’ Sam said in a questioning tone, so I turned to look at him. ‘Why did he call you Estel?’

‘It used to be my name, when I grew up.’

‘I thought your name to be Strider,’ Pippin said with his brows scrunched together and Merry slapped him gently over the back of his head. Pippin ducked and covered his head with his hand. ‘Why’d you do that for?’

‘No one’s named Strider.’

‘Well, how was I supposed to know?’ Pippin said and I laughed.

‘I have many names, Strider is one of them,’ I said and Pippin raised his chin, giving Merry a glare of satisfaction.

I stayed with the Hobbits, laughing and speaking for many hours, all the while keeping a look out for Legolas. After the Council, I had not been able to catch him before he left for Mirkwood, and I still remembered the last thing I had said to him regarding Thranduil’s people. His people. He had not taken kindly to my accusation, and I never should have said it.

Eventually, I noticed that I had lost track of the conversation that was going on around me, so I left the Hobbits in favor for searching for the missing Elf. I looked at all the usual places. I began with the Oak, for that is where he is most often. This time, there was only an Oak, and no Elf. So I continued to the quarters where he always slept when in Rivendell. He was not there either, though my eyes were caught by the bow he had left unstrung on his bed. It told me that he was still close, or he would not risk being caught without his weapon.

When I looked closer however, I noticed that the bow was not voluntarily unstrung, as much as unstrung because the string had broken. He had not worn the bow when we had met on the balcony either, so he must have left if here before then. He had not sought me out immediately, and I could only believe it was because he was still hurt from my words spoken in haste.

I sighed and stepped back out of the room, closing the door. If his bow had been compromised, it stood to reason that Legolas had also been injured, so I walked to the Houses of Healing. Knowing my friend, I should have checked there first, especially when he told me that he was fine. I walked faster.

I opened the door to the Houses of Healing and swept it with my eyes. A healer was standing by the hearth, stirring in a cup of warm brew. Elrohir was sitting on one of the beds, with Elladan standing over him, stitching up a wound above his left eyebrow. They must have returned only recently and I was joyed to see them.

‘My brothers,’ I said in greeting and Elrohir lifted one hand in a small wave as he shifted his eyes to look my way, without moving his head. Elladan merely grunted as he tied off his last stitch, and used a cloth to wipe any residue blood off.

‘What has befallen you?’ I asked and Elrohir grinned.

‘Legolas befell us,’ he answered with a voice filled with laughter and I raised an eyebrow.

‘Do explain.’

‘We met him as we were travelling back to Imladris. He was alone, so of course we offered him our companionship,’ Elrohir said as he felt the stitches that Elladan had completed. ‘Good job, Elladan.’

‘Indeed,’ Elladan answered before he slouched down on the bed next to Elrohir, and looked at me with almost as wide a grin as Elrohir was wearing. ‘The two hotheads got into a bit of a disagreement.’

I groaned. They were going to make me pull every word out of them.

‘That does not explain the stitches.’

‘But it does,’ Elrohir said. ‘Legolas hit me over the head with his bow.’

‘What?’ I exclaimed, entirely unintended. Legolas would not use his bow in such manners. But it did explain the broken string, and the stitches.

‘Not entirely undeserved,’ Elladan added with an amused smirk. There would be time to force them to tell me what had been the cause of it at a later occasion. Now, I had more pressing concerns.

‘Is he hurt?’

‘A good smack to his head might cure him of his hurt, in fact,’ Elladan said, thoughtfully. ‘He went to the waterfall, if you wish to catch up with him.’

‘Indeed, but how did your quest go?’

‘What we found we have shared with Elrond. He shall decide if it goes further than that,’ Elladan answered, and while it perturbed me I also knew I would not be able to drag it out of them if they had no wish to speak of it.

Legolas was indeed by the waterfall, sitting at its side, picking at the pebbles that lay around the shores.

‘They call you strange,’ I said when I had come closer.

‘Indeed?’ he asked in a pleased voice and I sat down next to him. He had picked a particular pebble up and was turning it around with his long fingers.

‘Yes. Though I know not why you tried to give that impression.’

‘I tried nothing. You blew smoke in my face, and I wished to get away from the vile smell. What better way than to jump into a sweet-smelling tree?’ he asked, not quite teasing, but not entirely serious either.

‘I apologize, the wind was not in my favor.’

‘Nor was it in mine,’ he said, stroking the surface of the rock. ‘I shall hope that future winds will be more favorable.’

‘Indeed,’ I answered simply, thinking of my future journey that I was to take with the Hobbits and Gandalf.

‘If I move the stone, Estel, will it still find its way home?’ he asked, his eyes transfixed to the pebble, and I blinked. Elves usually came with weird sayings but I had no idea what he meant.

‘What?’

‘This pebble has been lying here for ages upon ages, only moved when someone’s feet has upset its rest,’ he said, but I felt none the wiser. ‘It is much like me, I have gone between Imladris and Mirkwood. There have always been dangers, but I have always had hope that I will return. If I throw this stone away, will it still find its way home?’

‘You are… comparing yourself with a rock?’ I asked, still not understanding, and he turned to me with a gentle smile.

‘Not entirely, of course. In theory, I can choose where my feet shall point. But in reality, there is only one direction to go, and it is forward.’

‘You make little sense, Legolas,’ I said and he laughed as he put the pebble down. I could not help but notice that he put it at exactly the same place as he had picked it up from.

‘They called me strange, did they not? The hobbits?’

‘They did, and I see their point.’

‘They are very acute, indeed. It is an interesting journey that we have ahead of us.’ He said and it all fell into place.

‘You have been asked to be a part of the Company?’

‘I have. I will go to the passes of the Mountains, at the very least, and further if I am needed.’

‘Why?’

‘Do you not trust me, Aragorn?’ he asked lightly, but I saw the hint of doubt in his face. And heard it, through his use of my given name.

‘I trust you! I spoke rashly during the Council, and was surprised to hear of the creature’s escape, but I meant no ill.’

‘I know you did not,’ he said.

‘I am relieved,’ I said to him and he raised an eyebrow. ‘You, Gandalf and me should be enough to fight off any evil. Any others are an added bonus.’

‘The hobbits shall be valuable also,’ Legolas said with a small smile.

‘Indeed. And we will get back to our homes.’

‘That we will, but will they be what we expect?’ he asked.

‘The hobbits were right, you are a strange Elf,’ I said with a laugh and he also chuckled.

‘I though we established as much, already?’

It would be an interesting journey indeed.

**Author's Note:**

> I just realized that I've been working on this series for a bit over a year now, and I'm still enjoying it just as much :)
> 
> Thanks to everyone that have read through the entire series thus far, and thanks to those that are just reading this particular story as well.
> 
> Comments are always highly appreciated.  
> Hope you enjoy it :)


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